Sunday, April 10, 2011

This luminary project was inspired by the Club Scrap Holiday Weekend of Workshops box.

I'm still trying to decide what to place in the brass holder on the front of the base. I want to put a word there, but the right one hasn't struck me yet. The paisley stamp is stamped on translucent paper and I watercolored it on the back (hence the wrinkles!). The paper is loose, so I can take it out and swap it with another piece.

If you haven't checked out a Club Scrap project kit, I'd encourage you to take a look at the Girls' Night Out Event coming up in May. You'll get to participate in a chat, receive some great (original) supplies, and learn techniques through the videos.

One of the things I really like about getting projects with instructional videos is that I can watch someone make the project, and then decide how I want to alter it. In the original kit video, all of the base pieces were painted, and the luminary part was an open sheet of die cut paper. I can also incorporate my own embellishments - those little spools are so cute! I wrapped linen thread around them to make them look "real."

In a modification by Kay, the designer of the project, she wrapped the base in paper. I liked the look of that, so I wrapped mine - twice - once with a solid paper, and a second time with a translucent paper.

I also cut four board panels for my luminary, so I could cover the top of it and decorate the top. The board pieces are painted and then stamped with a musical note background from Purple Onion Designs.

Hope you enjoyed this peek at my project! I had a lot of fun making it.

Saturday, April 02, 2011

So, as we learned in my previous post, I don't like raw chipboard edges in my projects. In my last book, I used pigment ink to color the edges.

I cover so much bookboard with paper, I thought this might be fun to try. I ripped up some pieces of text weight paper (you need something pliable that can wrap easily), applied glue to the paper (see the upper right of the photo), and folded carefully over the book edges, starting with the corners.

By applying glue on a magazine, I have a clean surface at all times. Use a different part of the page to apply the glue by brushing over the entire piece. When one page is messy, rip it off, and use the next page.

I continued around until the whole edge was covered.

I covered the center portion of the cover with half of a die cut shape, and pressed this overnight in my bookpress.

I wasn't 100% happy with how this turned out. No matter how hard I tried, some glue transferred to the project, and didn't really have the crisp look I wanted. There are no mistakes, however, only opportunities to embellish! I coated the whole cover with acrylic medium (a mixture of gloss and matte) and I now love the final result.

I assembled the book the same way as my previous book and wound up with this finished product:

I can't decide if this needs more embellishment or not at this point. I'm thinking of adding something sparkly, but time will tell. What do you think? Is it finished, or could it use a little more bling?

Most materials are from Club Scrap. Hope you enjoy this alternative way to create a finished edge on a chipboard book!